Bonnie Rannald's Photo-Explorations in focus with nature. : Meteor Showers

Thursday, January 5, 2012

The Quadrantid Meteors

Star Chasing in January

The first meteor shower of 2012 was the Quadrantid that peaked on January 4th, around midnight for the western U.S. The Quadrantids are reported as being the most intense of all the meteor showers and also the shortest duration, occurring when Earth passes through the debris left by asteroid 2003 EH1.

Staying true to my nature of moon chasing and star watching, I was out and ready to catch what ever action came my way. Unfortunately, there was the light from a waxing gibbous moon and just enough cloud cover to obscure anything but the brightest meteor trails. Even the harsh winter night temperature was mild for this time of year, dipping down to around the freezing point.

The lens that I choose was my wide angle Nikon 24mm 2.8 to cover as much sky as possible. The Nikon D90 camera was set on manual mode at f/8 and the shutter was held open for approximately 10 second intervals on Bulb with an electronic cable release. And I also used my sturdiest tripod.

Noticing the descending moon setting in the west between the Wassuk Mountains and just over the bare tree branches, I made a long exposure and happened to catch one meteor trail that was visible through the clouds.

Even with the moon glow, the stars over Mount Grant were standing out against the winter sky.

The night sky over Walker Lake offers some of the best star gazing and it's always a thrill to see what the camera picks up during the long exposures.

Unlike 2011, this year promises to be a great year for meteor watching in the Northern Hemisphere because most of the meteor showers are due to peak when the sky will be dark and not bright with moonlight.

For information on 2012 meteor showers:

http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/earthskys-meteor-shower-guide

Photographs Make Great Gifts

What an exciting and interesting photo-adventure this day has been. I love it when I am drawn to an area and not knowing what to expect I get treated to new experiences.

Photography places me in the moment where I can share that moment in time. It becomes a life story as represented by my interaction with the scene. The happiness and beauty or the sorrow and strife; how I focus leaves a lasting impression that might touch the viewer on a spiritual level.

"Reflecting Nature's Artistry"

Many of these images are available on my website:

http://www.bonnierannald.com/

For custom matted and framed images:
Off The Wall

No images on this blog are within Public Domain or are available for free download.

All rights reserved, world-wide and images protected by Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). All photography, graphics, text, design, and content is copyrighted by Bonnie Rannald and should not be copied, down-loaded, transferred and re-created in any way without the express consent, in writing to Bonnie Rannald. For information on Bonnie Rannald licensed, right-managed images, please submit a written request.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Perseid Meteor Showers

Catch a Falling Star Over Walker Lake

The week of August 8th, the Perseid meteor show is due to peak between August 12th and 13th, becoming more spectacular in the early morning hours before dawn. The greatest difficulty with this spectacular meteor show is the light from a Waxing Gibbous or nearly full moon and of course favorable meteorological conditions with clear skies and calm winds.

I chose to take my chances with the meteors on the morning of August 11th. because the moon was due to set around 3am. I arose at 2:35am and when I went outside, the sky was very light even though the moon had already dropped behind the mountains to the west. Just as I was setting up my camera, I saw several brilliant star trails streak across the northeastern sky.

To try and photo the meteors, I selected my wide angle Nikon 24mm 2.8 lens. Using a cable release on the Nikon D90, I set the program on manual and the shutter on bulb so that I could control the speed. From past experience, I can get a 10-20 second exposure with the D90 without too much digital noise. For these night photos, I set the aperture at f/8 and the ISO was on 200. I also used my heaviest Bogan tripod to prevent as much camera as possible.

Around 3:35am, the sky to the northeast began to darken and I was all set up, ready for action. The radius point where the meteors will originate is in the constellation Perseus, just below the Cassiopeia's W in the Northeast sky. However in the early dawn, I noticed shooting stars in all directions of the sky. The problem is being able to catch the meteor trail during a 10-20 second shutter opening.

I did manage to capture one nice meteor trail to the east just before dawn.

Once the eastern sky began to lighten with dawn quickly approaching, I could not resist to take more photos in the starlit sky.

With dawn's light accenting Walker Lake, I walked to get a closer image of the early morning light.

For more information:
http://stardate.org/nightsky/meteors